Tesla registered fewer cars in California throughout 2024, experiencing a significant decline in sales, particularly for its Model 3 sedan. The drop coincides with Elon Musk's substantial political contributions to Donald Trump and Republican candidates, raising questions about the impact on Tesla's California market share. While business factors also played a role, Musk's political actions likely contributed to the decline.
Tesla registered fewer cars in California in all four quarters of 2024, as sales of its second-most important model plunged 36% for the year. In the US, Tesla sales fell almost 8% in the fourth quarter and 12% for the year, according to data sourced by the California New Car Dealers Association. Annual registrations of the Model 3 sedan dropped by more than a third.
While more common business factors also came into play, including changing over the Model 3 sedan early in the year, the company likely lost some business in California as a result of Elon Musk, 53, spending at least $288 million to help elect Donald Trump and other Republican candidates during the 2024 cycle. California went for Democratic nominee Kamala Harris by 20.2 points in November. Tesla did manage to maintain a majority of the state’s zero-emission vehicle registrations last year, although its share dropped to 52.5% from 60.1%. All models across the Austin-based company’s aging lineup fell for the year, with the exception of the Cybertruck, which began selling in late 2023. Honda Motor Co. and Hyundai Motor Co. were the biggest gainers in the EV segment, adding 1.8 and 1.5 percentage points of share, respectively. Musk moved Tesla’s headquarters out of California in 2021 after defying lockdown policies during the pandemic. One of the company’s two EV assembly plants in the US is in Fremont, in the San Francisco Bay area. In July of last year, he announced that his companies X and SpaceX would also leave the state for Texas, citing a new law Governor Gavin Newsom signed that banned school districts from requiring teachers to notify parents of changes to a student’s gender identity. After the election, Newsom threatened to exclude Tesla from EV rebates that the state may offer if Trump follows through with threats to repeal federal tax credits for consumers
Technology Politics TESLA CALIFORNIA SALES MUSK TRUMP POLITICS EV MODEL 3 COMPETITION HEADQUARTERS
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